Manchester United: Fabio’s Rooney request deserves the hairdryer treatment

England boss Fabio Capello has seen his World Cup plans thrown into disarray these past two weeks. First off John Terry’s alleged affair with former Chelsea team-mate Wayne Bridge’s ex Vanessa Perroncel was plastered all over the papers, causing a potential dressing room rift and forcing the Italian to strip the Chelsea captain of the armband. Then Terry’s current team-mate and left-back Ashley Cole fractured his ankle leaving him in a race against time to be fit for the World Cup. No wonder Capello is so concerned about the fitness of his star man Wayne Rooney.

The former Everton striker is having the season of his career at Old Trafford and has emerged from the shadows of Cristiano Ronaldo to be United’s main man. He’s scored 23 goals this season and is playing like a man beyond his young years. Full of energy, blessed with skill and developing all the time, Rooney is undoubtedly one of the best strikers in the world and he will have a huge say on whether England win the World Cup or not this summer.  

Capello doesn’t want the man who holds the key to England’s World Cup dreams to pick up an injury or burn out before the season is over and he has reportedly asked Sir Alex Ferguson to rest his number 10 in order to keep him fresh for the World Cup in South Africa. But I’m pretty sure that request will be rebuffed by the United general.

Manchester United this season have not been the force that they once were but despite struggling to put teams to bed they are still right in the title race, in the last 16 of the Champions League and in the Carling Cup final. Not bad for a team supposedly on the wane. However, much of that is down to the impressive Wayne Rooney and there’s no way that Sir Alex will opt to rest his main asset when the team is starting to gel and they enter the business end of the season. Not forgetting that it is United who pay his wages and nobody tells Sir Alex what to do.

I totally understand where Capello is coming from, after all the hopes of an expectant nation rest on his shoulders, but I seriously doubt the former Real Madrid boss would agree to such a request if the roles were reversed.

I also doubt whether Rooney would be too impressed by Capello’s request. Rooney was born to play football and he’s at his happiest when he’s out on the pitch, scoring goals and influencing games. He doesn’t want to be sitting in the stands watching the likes of Berbatov and Owen fluff chance after chance when there’s trophies to be won.

Capello has his own interests at heart, so does Sir Alex and I’m afraid that there will only be one winner in this battle and it won’t be the Italian.